HELP! 1st Grow - Heating problems!

pistolpanda

pistolpanda

Active Member
UPDATE: After going through hell and back I FINALLY managed to get that god d*mn m*therf*cking c*cksucking b*stard piece of sh*t Motherboard tray out of the case. I got two more magnets from RadioShack and Gorilla Glued all four to the back after switching to a different power strip and successfully got it to stay! My question now is which light formation is better?

..@@..
@....@ -OR- @@@@

Thanks ahead of time for everyone's continued support and help with making this possible for me!
 
pistolpanda

pistolpanda

Active Member
It looks like I may have to use the inverted "U" for lighting as my @@@@ powerstrip is too wide and I can't fit it into the case with the side panel shut. If I could figure someway to split my magnets in half, allowing around 1/4" of clearance I could get away with it, but for now I'm f*cked.
 
pistolpanda

pistolpanda

Active Member
That didn't even occur to me! I figured out it wasn't the lights though, so my @@@@ is set to go :D! The problem was the reflective lining. It was holding the side panel open, so I trimmed it a bit and now it works fine. However I will have to get some Velcro for future grows! I plan to get a different case for the future, as this one is sorta beat up and shitty.
 
electronug

electronug

Active Member
Good to hear. :)

And it's definitely better to practice (prototype lol) on gear that you don't mind throwing out if things go south.

BTW, I found a supplier of those server cases and they sell em for $100... Mr. Grow Pro is making a tidy profit if he buys everything in bulk.
 
pistolpanda

pistolpanda

Active Member
Might as well make this double post worth something! My temperatures seem to be running consistent at 84°F with three 80mm fans and one 120mm fan. The two intake fans are 80mm located in the front bottom, one 80mm exhaust fan located in the back middle and the 120mm exhaust fan located on the top back where the power supply used to be. I have a DIY Carbon filter on the 120mm exhaust fan, and one of these cut to the appropriate size attached to the 80mm fans. I'm wondering if perhaps these are affecting airflow. The filter on the 120mm is massive, so I may have to swap it out for a piece of the cut-to-size filter to help the temperatures. For now, 84°F should be fine, but ideally I'd like to have it around... 72-76°F. Any suggestions would be great! I may take the 80mm on the back and move it to the top front with 1.5" clearance like electronug suggested, but for now the lights are closer to the bottom of the case.
 
pistolpanda

pistolpanda

Active Member
Temperatures are 90°F about an inch blow the lights, which confuses me as the lights aren't hot when I touch them, and the air in the case is cool. I need these filters in, as they are the only way I can trap the light. Right now I have a little bit of light leaking, but not enough to be really noticable. It still looks like a computer that's running. Anymore light though, and it's use will be obvious. From what I understand and have read in numerous places, CFLs should be placed 1" away from the plant to provide optimal growth and minimal stretching, correct? If it comes down to it, I do have plugs that I can use to set the lights up sorta like this...

....@@....
..|.........|..
.@......@.
...............

Granted, if I did it like that, the plant would have a CFL on each side, roughly 2-3" away as a seedling and about 1" away as it grows. The foreseeable downside to this method would be stretching upward slightly because the other lights would be about 3-5" above it during every stage. What I'll do if the temperature is too high is take the carbon filter (it's a tube) off the 120mm fan and replace it with a bit of the cut-to-size carbon filter, which should allow -a lot- more airflow. Again, the foreseeable downside to that would be odor. My solution though is to simply grab the ONA block (although I hate the smell, so I may use lavender scented drier sheets) and plop it in there. Suggestions and thoughts please! Everything helps :)
 
stealth grow 11

stealth grow 11

Member
pistolpanda said:
Temperatures are 90°F about an inch blow the lights, which confuses me as the lights aren't hot when I touch them, and the air in the case is cool. I need these filters in, as they are the only way I can trap the light. Right now I have a little bit of light leaking, but not enough to be really noticable. It still looks like a computer that's running. Anymore light though, and it's use will be obvious. From what I understand and have read in numerous places, CFLs should be placed 1" away from the plant to provide optimal growth and minimal stretching, correct? If it comes down to it, I do have plugs that I can use to set the lights up sorta like this...

....@@....
..|.........|..
.@......@.
...............

Granted, if I did it like that, the plant would have a CFL on each side, roughly 2-3" away as a seedling and about 1" away as it grows. The foreseeable downside to this method would be stretching upward slightly because the other lights would be about 3-5" above it during every stage. What I'll do if the temperature is too high is take the carbon filter (it's a tube) off the 120mm fan and replace it with a bit of the cut-to-size carbon filter, which should allow -a lot- more airflow. Again, the foreseeable downside to that would be odor. My solution though is to simply grab the ONA block (although I hate the smell, so I may use lavender scented drier sheets) and plop it in there. Suggestions and thoughts please! Everything helps :)
Click to expand...
you can make a light filter out of card board look at pics
 

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pistolpanda

pistolpanda

Active Member
@stealth grow 11, that would ruin the stealth aspect of my grow though :( the average PC doesn't have cardboard tunnels sticking off of them, otherwise I would have used a drier exhaust tube.
 
stealth grow 11

stealth grow 11

Member
pistolpanda said:
@stealth grow 11, that would ruin the stealth aspect of my grow though :( the average PC doesn't have cardboard tunnels sticking off of them, otherwise I would have used a drier exhaust tube.
Click to expand...
i'm aloud to grow that's why its on the outside for people who aren't allowed to grow place it on the inside just make a diy light baffle
 
pistolpanda

pistolpanda

Active Member
I presume that this is what you were talking about? It seems relatively easy to build, and I'll try it out. Thanks for the help, stealth grow 11. +rep :)

EDIT: The only thing I'm not sure about with this light baffle is how big it should be? They say it should be 5x the size of your exhaust fan, but I figure just a 120mm by 120mm box will do?
 
stealth grow 11

stealth grow 11

Member
pistolpanda said:
I presume that this is what you were talking about? It seems relatively easy to build, and I'll try it out. Thanks for the help, stealth grow 11. +rep :)
Click to expand...
yes that's about it there's so many different ways it comes down to what works for you better keep us updated also if you still have a heat issue try one fan blowing over the bulbs to cool them and move the heat away
 
pistolpanda

pistolpanda

Active Member
Alright, I finished making the light baffle for the 120mm exhaust fan, I've put a lavender scented dryer sheet in it to get rid of that pot smell when it comes around (/sob). We'll see how it works!
 
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